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Manufacturer: Desjn (J Design)
Retailer(s): classicplayingcards.com, eBay
Average Price: $14.95 per 2 Deck set, plus $4.85 shipping
Material: PVC Plastic

Desjn cards are new and relatively unknown at this time, but could make a big splash in the plastic card market. These cards were custom designed by Classicplayingcards.com (aka Jason Hawley) and are manufactured out of China. The “Classic Paisley” design is unique and has a European flair with myriad colors to choose from, 6 in all! They come in poker size, large or standard index, and are shrink wrapped and pakaged in standard boxes.

Price

$14.95 for 2 decks plus shipping.

Feel

The slick feel of these cards is unique and will require some getting used to. One of the first things you will notice is that they are thicker than Copags or original KEMs and have a stiffer feel to the touch and shuffle. They feel less thick, but are easier to bend and shuffle, than Dal Negros. They definitely have that plastic card feel to them and I think they feel more slippery than original KEMs. They slide well together in the deck or when rubbing two cards together, but watch out, they do fly across the felt or neoprene in a hurry!

Looks

The bold crisp colors and stark white backgrounds will definitely catch your attention on these cards. The card back design is unique (designated as “Classic Paisley”) with great colors – Six (6) in all to choose from (black, red, blue, yellow, green, and purple)! The cards have a bright white plastic to them and the colors are just as bright but true. The black is very black. Graphically you won’t confuse these with any other decks out, the design is unique. There is flesh-toned skin on the faces, the spades and clubs have disconnected stems, the heart has a bugled top and thinner point, and the diamonds are star-like with longer points trailing off from the center. The numbers are modeled after a sans-serif font and are easy to see and read. The pips on these cards are close together and very unique. The court card detail is what will catch your attention. If you spend the time, you will find several nuances that will tell you these were designed with real feel and love for what the final outcome was to be. For example each queen holds a single rose in her hand all a unique color by suit.

Security/Originality

Security at this point for these cards would actually be fairly stellar. You can pretty much be assured that outside cards wont be introduced into your home game with these due to there unique design and the fact that they are totally new to the market. The ink used seems very durable and you can’t see suit marks or colors through the backside even when the card is held up to a bright light. I intentionally tried to mark a card by trying to run a line down the backside of the K of spades and could not with just my thumbnail. Like any card it’s not totally impossible to mark and as such I took the lid of a tube of blistex (something you can palm hold in your hand) and marked a Desjn card and an original KEM with a single line (it took a lot of pressure and effort)! You could see the mark in the right light as the cards were dealt out of both decks however, the KEM card line disappeared within 5 to 10 minutes (I tried this 3 times) I still had a mark on the Desjn card, though it is less prominent. The next day the mark was 90% gone and pretty hard to distinguish at all. I worked the card a little and now it’s nearly impossible to see. Realize that this was an extreme and it’s not likely that marking like this could take place in your game.

Durability

I have used one of my sets for about 3 weeks and they seem to hold solid. I can find no wear marks of any kind, they have held shape well, colors still look fresh and bold and they feel crisp. Other decks of these cards have been used for several months now in a few regular home games where I play and they have held up very well.

Pros

• Fresh new design and look
• Super white cards faces
• Superb feel and nice thickness
• Card replacement program offered

Cons

• Too new to have real feel for long term durability
• Only one back design offered at this point
• Only available in Poker size at this time (Bridge size may be coming)
• Limited distribution and availibilty

Reviewers Comments

I own 8 decks of these cards and love the designs and colors. They are definitely a bit harder to shuffle than KEMs. The shuffle feel is stiffer, crisper and they are louder in the shuffle than KEMs. A deck of original KEMs weigh 4.15 oz and these come in at 4.5 ounces. I think they feel slicker than my KEMs but I love how bright these are, in a dim poker room you will definitely not have any problem seeing your hole cards or the community cards! They have worn well thus far, and are reasonable priced. I also believe they get dirty faster than KEM's, but a quick wipe down and they are good to go again. I would recommend them as a great alternative for your home game use, or for any use for that matter.